Scroll to bottom and select web view. H.Mcmurray's Research exposing the poisoning of 1000 square miles around El Paso by Asarco smelter through what the EPA and US DOJ said was illegal burning of massive amounts of illegal hazardous/;radioactive wastes from 1991 to 1998. The poisons remain.We have never been told how much radioactive strontium/isotopes are present from illegal actions of Asarco (see 1998 confidential for settlement purposes only DOJ EPA Asarco document,10/2006 nytimes)

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"THE ONLY THING NECESSARY FOR THE TRIUMPH OF EVIL IS FOR GOOD MEN TO DO NOTHING"

Monday, August 16, 2010

Ms. Schell,the following makes no scientific or "legal" sense. Surely Project Navigator can provide better answers than this and not waste our time.

See my response.

"[Project Navigator]Response:Both the GAO and EPA have fully investigated and reported on the hazardous waste issue involving Encycle and Asarco.In a February 16, 2010 letter to the EPA, several environmental groups presented eight (8) different issues they had with the cleanup of the former ASARCO site. A major request/issue was # 3B: “EPA should make public all information concerning the type, source and amounts of hazardous waste that were illegally incinerated at the facility.” In their May 11, 2010 response the EPA supported TCEQ’s determination that ASARCO was a metal contaminated site and that “EPA has no data that “product” sent by Encycle to ASARCO contained organic chemicals.”

"

GAO did NOT investigate ASARCO. In fact, your "legal" argument is one that the ASARCO attorney himself gave me over the telephone and it is flat out wrong. If you phone the G.A.O. you will be able to confirm for yourself that the investigation was not about ASARCO but about how the military in general handled hazardous waste disposal - and that the GAO included the Asarco handling of RMA (Rocky Mt. Arsenal) waste only as one of many examples they studied. As far as the EPA "full investigation", please READ the 1998 EPA to DOJ Asarco confidential for settlement purposes only document in which the EPA stated that ASARCO had burned unmanifested illegal hazardous waste for profit for years. Rep. Reyes made a public statement soon after declaring that ASARCO had paid millions of dollars on the condition that the details of what it had done would never become public. Yet, this matter is now in the public domain with that release of the DOJ EPA asarco confidential for settlement purposes only document.

As far as your quote stating “EPA has no data that “product” sent by Encycle to ASARCO contained organic chemicals.” -- Please clarify -- I never asked you to test for organic chemicals from Encycle even though we know that the site is contaminated with PCB's and Dioxins (all secondary smelters are producers of the latter). I have asked our environmental agencies to test for actinides and radioactive isotopes -- and, this has not been done. So, since "...in their May 11, 2010 response the EPA supported TCEQ’s determination that ASARCO was a metal contaminated site" WHY HASN'T THIS TESTING (metals and transition metals) BEEN DONE?

Ms. Schell, you write that current onsite electrical workers did not contact Asarco waste [ "

PNL workers fully are trained and informed about any current or potential site hazards and are outfitted accordingly.Workers performing electrical work are not in contact with waste and therefore do not need hazmat gear to perform the work.Additionally, workers have been informed of any on site risks."]. This is inherently incredulous, Ms. Schell,since TCEQ/EPA/Asarco have all documented the heavy industrial-levels-of-contamination at that site with arsenic, and this is odorless, tasteless and documented as being in the air there. Those workers were not wearing masks made to remove vapors or nanoparticles of arsenic.

We ask that the Trustee now address the problem honestly. The International JAC La Paz Accord group has also asked for full disclosure of the Asarco background chemicals left here from its operations. This should include testing for polonium, lead isotopes including radioactive ones, radon, radium precursors for radon, actinides including tritium, uranium, plutonium, and any isotopes from naturally occurring radioisotopes.

In regards to the ammonia-tank. I did not ask about a tank being removed. I asked why a tank was added, and what it had been used for while this site was supposed to have been "idled".

In regards to your statement that "the Trustee will maintain this storm water system through closure of the site.The storm water system that will remain after closure has not been designed yet. " Please explain to me how this present storm water system meets the conditions of the 9-2006 SW-5 permit that says that all stormwater from the Asarco site will be handled via the City stormwater system and not discharged to the RioGrande. According to your statement "SW-5 is located at the western edge of the Former Asarco plant property and discharges through a culvert below the B.N.& S.F. railroad tracks.The permitted discharge for storm water goes into the Rio Grande". THIS SITE IS NOT PERMITTED FOR DISCHARGING STORMWATER TO THE RIO GRANDE, THE AMERICAN CANAL or PAISANO.

1 comment:

If you walk onto Asarco property, you walk right into the waste. Ms. Schell, you need to go see it for yourself. There is waste everywhere you look. You're trying to save millions of dollars, that may benefit YOU and Asarco cronies - but....in doing so, you are cutting from the safety of cleaning up that mess. Don't think you can get away with that.

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Extent of Contamination from Asarco to Rio Grande (click on pic)

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Luke 12:2

"For there is nothing covered, that shall not be revealed; neither hid, that shall not be known". 8-3-13 Mrs. V.R. Stony Brook State Univ. of New York Oral History Review panel discussion about ASARCO. El Paso TX USA

this link broken for 10/2006 NYT article

We know know that Asarco, Dupont and Englehard --- all caught by EPA and the US DOJ as sending illegal wastes to be burned here (the EPA still refused to release the invoices listed by ID numbers in the 1998 73 page US DOJ EPA secret document NYTimes 10/2006) were US DOE HIGH LEVEL RADIOACTIVE WASTE DISPOSAL CONTRACTORS. TO THIS DAY none of them have been held responsible through the bankruptcy court for ANY of the illegal waste disposal damage to our community and its water. It is very likely that they hid under the protection of the 1940's Atomic energy act (see book on rocky flats plutonium site by Karen Iversen).

Sample FOIA request Letter

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Region VI

Attn:Freedom of Information Officer (6MD-00)

1445 Ross Ave

Dallas, TX75202-2733

Re:FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT REQUEST

Dear Sir or Madam:

Pursuant to the Freedom of Information Act, 5 U.S.C. § 552, we request a copy of all documents, ((from January, 2007 to present, pertaining to the __________________... add your specific description)).

If any documents or items are withheld, please identify the exemption under which you believe such materials may be withheld from disclosure.To the extent any exemption is claimed with respect to a document, please produce so much of such document that is not covered by any claimed exemption.We reserve the right to appeal your decision to withhold any information.

In compliance with the Freedom of Information Act, we will pay reasonable charges incurred for search and copying costs [- -add this part if you need a limit of charges: “up to $25.00” (($25.00 is the default)].In the event that there are a substantial number of responsive documents, we would appreciate the opportunity to review all responsive documents.

Please reply to this request within the next twenty (20) working days, as required by the Freedom of Information Act.If you have any questions or comments, please call ____________.

Sincerely,

2002 EPA comes to El Paso

wearing HAZMAT (Hazardous Materials) suits

"There comes a time when silence becomes betrayal"- Martin Luther King

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